One Last Time
by spblink29
Summary: Set after 2x23, after C tells B "it's just a game." Blair goes to Italy, and finds that she needs him more than she expected. Chuck can't decide whether or not she would be better off without him, and whether or not he can survive without her. a C/B fic:
1. Chapter 1

One Last Time

C&B fic (the best couple on gg!), and there's no specific timeline really, sometime after 2x23, "the Wrath of Con." Thanks for reading and I hope you like it!

Blair Waldorf sat in her empty hotel room in Venice, Italy, staring out the window with a blank expression on her face. She was determined to forget about all of her problems, but for some reason unknown to her, she kept replaying the week's events in her head. Despite her very best efforts, despite being thousands of miles away from him, and despite trying to convince herself she didn't care, she could still see the look in his eyes when he said those hurtful words. The words that nearly killed her to hear. The words that made her cry all night.

"_It's just a game. I hate to lose. You're free to go."_

He said it in such a way that made her truly believe him. His eyes seemed hard, careful, like he had thought of his words beforehand. It wasn't just something he blurted out. He meant what he said to her, and now it was over. Sure, they had been _officially_ over for quite some time now, but things never really felt like they were done. In the back of her mind, Blair had always suspected that it was only a matter of time before they got back together again and worked out their problems. But when he said those words to her, Blair felt such a sense of finality that she broke down crying right in front of him.

And now, here she was by herself in a lonely hotel room, wondering what she had done to make him not want her. Blair remembered the days when her and Chuck were sneaking around, when he seemed genuinely interested in her. When he made her feel special and wanted. When he told her she gave him butterflies. Of course those were all distant memories of the past, but she didn't know why he stopped caring. What had she done wrong? At that moment, Blair felt a thousand insecurities rush back to her all at once. Like comments her mother had made to her, about being too fat or not looking right. Or the feelings from when she was with Nate, how he always ignored her and made her feel like she wasn't good enough. Or how she felt when she was with Serena, because everyone seemed to like Serena better. And then there was Chuck. She didn't even know where to begin listing the things he made her feel.

All of this made Blair so tempted to handle these feelings like she used to, to try and make herself feel better. She slowly walked into the bathroom, knelt on the ground carefully, not wanting to get her skirt dirty, and stared at the white toilet, wondering whether or not to do it. She knew that it wasn't right. She knew that she was past all of this, that she didn't have to make herself sick anymore, but she wanted to, just this once. She wanted to feel better. Just as she was about to stick her finger down her throat, she felt something wet hit her hand. A tear, maybe? She hadn't noticed that she was crying, but she knew why. It had taken her almost a year to get over this disease, and just like that, she had almost given in again. She needed help.

Quickly, she grabbed her purse and dialled Serena's number. Waiting impatiently to the endless ringing sound, Blair finally hung up the phone, realizing that Serena was either too busy or didn't have her phone on her. She began to dial another number when a painful realization hit her: there was only one other person who knew her secret besides her mother and Serena, and calling her mother was certainly out of the question. It was going to have to be Chuck. Unsure whether or not to call him, Blair decided that she needed someone to stop her from hurting herself, so she cautiously dialled his number, hoping that he would pick up. After two rings, she heard his low voice, and noticed that he sounded a little surprised she was calling him. Probably didn't expect to hear from her so soon after he hurt her.

"Hello?" He said, unsure that his caller ID was right. Hearing his voice made her heart stop, all of the memories of his hurtful words flowing back to her.

"Hey, Chuck." She didn't realize how upset she sounded.

"What do you want Blair? I thought I made things clear the last time we spoke. It's over." He said in a harsh tone, no need to string her along and upset her any more than he already had.

"That's not why I called. I-I just really needed to talk and Serena was busy. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called. Never mind." Just as she was about to click "end," she heard him respond.

"Wait, Blair, are you crying? What's going on, is everything okay?" He immediately felt guilty about hurting her, because she sounded so upset.

"I don't know. Well yes –technically, I guess- everything is fine. I mean, nothing has happened yet, I'm just worried that it might and I don't know what to do." She was speaking quickly, and panic filled her voice, immediately making him feel concerned.

"Blair, tell me what's going on. What are you talking about? Are you alright?" Worry was evident in his voice now.

"I almost did it again Chuck. I'm worried I might start again. I don't want to make myself sick, it just happens. What should I do?" She felt uncomfortable asking him about this, since they had never really talked about her problem, but she needed him right now.

Understanding immediately, he wanted to see her, to hold her and tell her that everything was going to be fine. "Blair don't do anything to yourself, please. I don't want you doing that again. Tell me where you are and I'll be there as fast as I can. You really shouldn't be alone right now."

"I'm in Venice, but Chuck, you really don't need to come all the way here, I really shouldn't have bothered you. Just forget about it, okay? I'm sorry I called. I'll be fine."

"Blair I'll be there soon. I'm sorry but you can't just tell me something like that and then expect me to forget it. I will see you soon and please, don't do anything to yourself before I get there. Okay? Promise me."

He was pleading with her now, desperately hoping that she wouldn't start hurting herself again. He could never forgive himself for purposely hurting her and telling her that she meant nothing to him. He knew that was the probable cause for this sudden relapse, and he felt compelled to undo his mistake. He needed to be with her right now, despite his plan to help her move on. This was more important than that.

"Okay, I promise," She said quietly.

And with that, he hung up and practically ran out the door, on the phone with his pilot ordering that the Bass jet be ready for take off in ten minutes. He needed to be with her as soon as possible.

After an excruciatingly long flight, Chuck rushed to the hotel that Blair was staying at and knocked on her door, hoping that she was okay. After a few moments had passed, Blair opened the door to let him in. She looked as though she had been crying, her eyes were slightly red, but it was also evident that she was trying to act as if nothing was wrong. Her hair, as usual, was perfect with every strand of hair in its place, and a fashionable headband was on her head. Her makeup was flawless, her lips the perfect shade of red, her eye makeup not the slightest bit smudged. Blair Waldorf was doing what she always did; she was trying to act perfect and strong. To most, Blair's smile may have seemed genuine, but Chuck knew her better than that. He could tell when she was upset.

"Blair, how are you? Is everything alright?" He said in a worried tone.

"I'm fine, really. I'm sorry I called, I didn't mean to alarm you. You didn't need to come all the way over here."

"You don't need to lie to me, I can tell that you're not fine. Just talk to me, please. You said you needed to talk to someone, so here I am."

"Chuck, what are you even doing here? Look, I'm grateful you came, but honestly, why do you care? You told me that it was all just a game, that you didn't care about me, and then you fly halfway around the world because you're worried about me? That doesn't make sense!" She said, a little frustrated now. She had been crying about him for nearly a week now, and she deserved answers.

"I'm worried about you, Blair. You're right, I don't think that we should be in a relationship, because all we do is hurt each other, but that doesn't mean that I don't care about you. We have been friends for 10 years, so when you call and say that you need me, I'm going to be there. Because we're friends."

He truly did care about her, but he knew that he couldn't make her happy. Even though being friends wasn't his first choice, it was still better than losing her entirely. She didn't need to know how much he cared about her.

When she heard him say the word "friend," it nearly killed her. He knew that she still loved him, and he still didn't want her. This immediately reminded Blair of all of those insecurities, of why she needed to call him in the first place, and she could feel the moisture in her eyes building again. Tears threatening to fall from the corners of her eyes again. She tried her best to blink them away, knowing that she shouldn't cry in front of him.

"Blair, please just talk to me. I can tell that you're trying to act strong, and usually I admire you for it, but you don't need to lie to me. I know you better than that. I can see how upset you are. Just talk to me."

"Okay, fine. What do you want me to say? I started thinking about some stuff that upset me a little bit, like my mom, Nate, Serena, some other stuff I guess. I don't know, it just happened, and I was about to do it again, I almost made myself sick, and then I was crying because I know how hard I've worked to get past all of this. I wanted to make sure I wouldn't be tempted again, so I called you to try and talk me down, I guess."

"Well, I'm glad you called. I really don't want you to hurt yourself, Blair. Whatever you were getting upset about isn't worth that," he said, as he pulled her into a gentle hug. "You have no idea how worried I was about you, it terrified me," he whispered in a low voice into her ear. He was just so glad that she was okay, he didn't mind how much it hurt him to hold her like this and know that they couldn't be together.

Just then, Blair remembered why she was hopelessly and irrevocably in love with Chuck Bass, because even though he was arrogant, womanizing, rude, and sometimes hurt her so bad she thought she could never forgive him, he could be the most loving and caring person in the world when he wanted to be, when he wasn't putting on some act. He made her feel like she never had before in her whole life; loved. He treated her like she was special, like she was the only girl for him, even though he had told her otherwise. Blair desperately missed this feeling, the familiar feeling of his arms wrapped securely around her, his low voice whispering in her ear. It was like all was right with the world, like all of her problems just melted away.

Slowly, Blair pulled out of their hug so she could look him in the eyes, and even though she knew she shouldn't, she couldn't stop herself from leaning in and touching his soft lips with hers. Their kiss began very slowly, but suddenly became more urgent as she noticed he wasn't backing away from her like she suspected he might. His arms worked their way down to her hips to pull her closer to him, and her hands were already tangled in his hair.

Knowing that he should have the common sense to stop this from happening, even though he really, really didn't want to, Chuck backed away a half an inch from her face and looked her straight in the eyes, both of their chests heaving from their lack of oxygen. Quietly, he said, "Blair, you're just upset, I really don't think we should do this. You know nothing is going to come from this, right? I already told you that this can't happen. We're not going to be in a relationship."

"Chuck, I'm not asking for a relationship, I just need you right now. I need this. It can be our one night in Italy, and then we can pretend like it never happened, okay? Just this one last time, please, for me," she asked pleadingly.

And with that, after a moment of hesitation, he pulled her towards the bed and kissed her passionately, echoing her words. "One Last time."

Thanks for reading, another chapter to come soon. Please review if u liked it or want to comment!


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks everyone for the reviews! I'm glad you like, it :)

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Chuck looked down at the beautiful brunette lying on his chest and he smiled to himself. The first time he had smiled in a while, it seemed like. Ever since his father's death and the whole mess with his uncle, he couldn't remember a single moment that he was happy. If he was being honest with himself, he hadn't really been happy since the last time he was with Blair. She truly was the only person he knew that could make him feel that way, but unfortunately for him, he usually made her miserable, and he cared about her too much to put her through that. So he had to let her go.

Trying to push those thoughts out of his mind, he glanced absentmindedly towards the window of Blair's suite in Venice, Italy, wanting to distract himself. That's when he noticed the faint light of the sunrise outside, and a painful thought hit him; their one night in Italy was coming to an end. He knew this moment had been coming, but still the hours seemed to fly by. They stayed awake all night trying to make the most of their time together, but they both knew it couldn't last forever.

"I think it's almost morning," he said quietly as he stared out the window, still holding her tightly in his arms.

"Not yet," she said as she lifted her head to look him in the eyes.

"Blair, I can't stay forever. We said one night, and the night's almost over."

"Well why does it have to be one night? Why can't we make it two nights? Or a week? Or better yet, why don't we stop playing games with each other and just make this a permanent thing. We could have this every night Chuck, I know you want this too. We could make it work." She looked at him pleadingly. She hated how desperate she sounded, it was so unlike her. Blair Waldorf always had her dignity, but for some reason being around Chuck Bass made her forget about her dignity. All she cared about now was being with him.

"Blair," he started, and he didn't really know how to answer her. Should he tell her that there was nothing in the world he wanted more than to be with her? That no matter where he was or what he was doing, he could never stop thinking about her? Should he tell her how happy she made him? After a long moment, he decided that was far too selfish of him. He usually didn't mind being selfish, but he had already put Blair through too much. He had to let her go. "We can't make this work, it's not going to happen. I told you before we started that no relationship was coming from this. Last night was perfect, but we've already tried the whole dating thing, we ended up trying to make each other miserable. So let's just leave it at this."

She had expected those words to come from him, but she was surprised by how much they hurt. She didn't want him to leave yet, she wasn't ready. She leaned her head up and kissed his lips passionately, hoping to make him stay a little while longer.

As much as he wanted to back away, because he knew it wasn't fair to string her along this way, he just couldn't force himself to do it. He kissed her back urgently, knowing that this would be the last time he could kiss her. That thought terrified him.

Finally, after deciding that he couldn't lead her on like this anymore, he summoned all his strength and willpower to break their kiss. As soon as he pulled away from her, he missed the feeling of holding her in his arms.

"We can't," he said in between breaths, still recovering from their passionate kiss.

"I know," she said sadly.

"I don't want this night to be over yet, Blair. I don't know how to say goodbye to you," he confessed as he brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face. He was going to miss her so much.

"It'll be fine, we'll still see each other in New York, it won't be so bad," she said, trying to assure herself that it was true.

"It won't be the same. Everything here was so easy, so perfect." He looked out the window once more, and now the sunshine was evident all throughout the sky. He knew it was time to go.

Knowing exactly what he was thinking, she pulled him into her arms and held him tightly, not wanting to let go. They stayed like that for an immeasurable amount of time, neither one quite ready to let the other go just yet. Finally, he whispered in her ear, "It's time Blair. I'm sorry." He backed away from her slightly, kissed her lips very gently, and finally released her from his arms.

"Goodbye Blair."

"Goodbye Chuck," she said sadly, wishing that he wouldn't leave.

He gazed at her for a moment, and then he was out the door. Blair stood there, trying to assure herself that everything was going to be okay, but she was not very convinced. And just like that, she was in the exact same position that she was a week ago; standing in a lonely hotel room in Venice, crying about Chuck Bass. Again.

Blair had been back in New York for about a week, and so far, being friends with Chuck Bass was more difficult than she had imagined. They both agreed to act as if Italy had never happened, but for Blair, it was impossible to forget. Every time she saw Chuck, she was reminded of her feelings for him, but she knew that there was no chance of them getting back together. Chuck seemed happy to just be friends, but Blair knew that a part of him still wanted her. He could lie and pretend that he didn't care about her all her all he wanted, but Blair knew him better than that. He put up a good façade as he always did, but Blair saw the way he looked at her when he thought no one was looking, and she had heard the panic and in his voice when she called him from Italy that night; she knew he still wanted her. The problem was getting him to admit it. All Blair had to do was think of a scheme that would force him to say it out loud. And just like that, Blair knew what to do. She picked up her phone, searched through her phonebook, and found the number she was looking for, hoping that her plan would work.

An hour later, she called Chuck and asked him to come over to her place, saying that it was important. He was there in a matter of minutes, expecting some sort of emergency, only to find Blair in her bedroom, comparing two dresses side by side in from of a mirror.

"Alright Blair, I'm here. What is it that's so important?" he said, slightly angered by her urgent tone on the phone.

"Well, which dress do you like better?" she asked, holding two stunning dresses in front of her. One was a long, elegant, red dress, the other a sexy, black dress.

"Are you serious? This is why you called? I am not the friend you call when you have a wardrobe crisis, call Serena or someone. And for future notice, this does not qualify as important."

"Calm down Bass, I wasn't expecting you to rush over here like you did, sorry for the inconvenience, and I think it's very important. You and I always had the best fashion sense, so which one is it?" she said, very pleased by how quickly he had rushed over when she called.

"I'm not sure, I'd have to see them on you first."

"Of course," she said as she was about to get changed. "Turn around please Bass, and no peeking."

He smiled as he turned around, thinking how pointless this was. He had seen her a thousand times before.

"There, my eyes are closed too. Satisfied?" he said.

"Yes, just stay there a second... okay, I'm done."

And with that, he began to turn around, just in time to see her exposed lower back as she did up her zipper. Why had she told him to turn around if she wasn't dressed yet? He smiled to himself as he thought of the answer; she wanted him to see her. Probably her way of torturing him, and it was working. She looked gorgeous.

"You look beautiful, you should wear that," he said as he smiled, because it was just so challenging not to smile when he was around Blair.

"You're sure? You haven't even seen the black dress yet," she asked as she turned around slowly, so he could see the whole dress.

"I don't need to see the other dress. You look stunning. Just out of curiosity, what is it that you're getting all dressed up for?"

"Oh, I'm just going out on a date to a gala. I want to make sure I look perfect for him," she said, knowing it would make Chuck jealous. All she wanted was for him to tell her not to go. For him to take her in his arms and kiss her the way he had in Italy, but Blair knew the odds were slim. This was going to take some time.

"A date?" he asked, trying to look like he didn't care. But they both knew he cared a lot more than he should. He knew this was only a matter of time, since Blair had never had any trouble finding men. This was the reason he had let her go. He wanted her to move on with a normal, stable guy who would make her happier than he could, but that idea seemed a lot better in theory. In reality, he wanted her all to himself. Of course, she couldn't know that. "That's great, I'm sure you'll have a great time. Well I guess that's all the fashion help you need, so I should get going. See you later," he said as he quickly walked to the door.

Blair smiled to herself, she knew she was getting to him. It was only a matter of time before he told her how he really felt.

That night, Chuck sat in his hotel suite with Nate, bored out of his mind, while Nate continued rambling something about Vanessa. Chuck had gathered that the two might be back together or maybe, but he wasn't sure, because the only thing he could think about right now was Blair, on her date. Chuck understood that Blair had to move on eventually, much to his dismay, but it seemed a little soon for her to be dating again, since she was practically confessing her love for him about a week ago. Was she just trying to make him jealous? Or was she actually trying to move on?

"Man, what's with you? Are you even listening to what I'm saying?" Nate said, interrupting his thoughts.

"Um, sorry, just zoned out I guess. What were you saying?" Chuck asked, expecting Nate to start rambling again.

"You're thinking about her, aren't you?" Nate asked, already knowing the answer.

"I don't know what you're talking about," denied Chuck, and he hoped that Nate would leave it at that.

"Blair, you're thinking about Blair. You know, if you care about her so much you really shouldn't have pushed her away. You guys really need to stop playing games with each other and just date, please. You know it's what you both want. Because if you don't, she's going to keep going out on dates with other guys, and you're gonna end up sitting in your hotel room with me on a Friday night, wishing you were with her."

Chuck thought about that for a moment, and Nate had a point. There was no reason for him to be just sitting here thinking about her pathetically. He had to do something. Then, he got an idea.

"Nate, grab you coat, we're going out," Chuck said with a smile.

"Okay, where are we going?"

"Oh, nowhere really. Probably just to this gala I was supposed to go to, it's a business thing."

"Isn't Blair on a date at a gala?" Nate said, knowing that Chuck already knew this.

"It's not a big deal Nate, we're just going to go in, see who she's with, and leave. She won't even know we were there."

"Chuck, I don't know if this is a good idea. And why should you care who she's with? You're over her, right?"

"You know I'm not quite over her yet, and I'm just curious to see if I know the guy she's with. We're just going to look and leave. It's harmless," Chuck said as he walked out the door. He was going to this gala with or without Nate.

"Fine, okay wait up. I'll go spy on Blair with you."

Ten minutes later, Chuck and Nate entered the gala and glanced around, trying to see Blair. After a few moments, Chuck finally saw her, looking flawless as always, and he saw who she was with.

"Damn, Blair is looking hot. Who is that she's with?" he said, gesturing towards the man at her side, who had his arm wrapped around her.

"Scott Spaulding," Chuck said with disgust. "She's here with Scott Spaulding. What the hell is she thinking? He's all wrong for her."

"Wow," Nate said, looking at Chuck. "You really do love her don't you? You're actually concerned about her. If it makes you feel any better, he looks like a pretty nice guy. And she looks happy."

"He is not a nice guy, Nate. He's the heir to Spaulding Enterprises, which is my company's top competitor, by the way, and he is a complete jerk. He just sleeps around with any woman he can get, and usually ends up cheating on them all."

"Oh, so he's a wealthy heir to a company and he sleeps around. Ya, you're right, he does sound like a jerk," Nate said sarcastically. "You realize that this guy is basically you, right?"

"No Nate, he's not. Because I actually care about Blair, and he's probably just trying to get in her pants. Of course if I tell her that, she'll just assume I'm jealous and lying to her. This was a terrible idea, we never should have come here. Come on, let's go," Chuck said, trying to make a quick exit.

Of course, Chuck Bass was not someone who could leave unnoticed. As soon as he turned towards the door, there were several business owners and investors trying to talk to him, forcing him to stay longer than he wanted. That's when Blair glanced around the room carelessly, and she couldn't believe what she saw. Chuck was here, and had seen her on a date with Scott. She already knew that Chuck hated Scott because he was a Spaulding, and apparently their companies didn't get along, but now she could practically see his jealousy. It would only be a matter of time before Chuck was begging for her back. Blair smiled to herself, and when she knew Chuck was looking, she passionately kissed Scott, knowing that it would make Chuck even more jealous.

When Chuck saw this, he didn't know what to do. He knew he would have to see something like this eventually, but he didn't give her up so that she could go waste her time with another guy that was just going to cheat on her. She deserved someone better. He was surprised by how much it hurt him to see her with someone else, and for a moment, he couldn't look away. He was stunned.

"Come one man, you don't need to see this. Let's just go to Victrola and get some drinks. Forget about her," Nate said, pulling him out the door.

"Forget about her," Chuck said, as he laughed to himself. "If only it were that simple, Nathaniel."

And with that, Chuck went with Nate to Victrola, where he tried all night to do something he knew was absolutely impossible; forget about Blair Waldorf.

Thanks again for all the reviews guys, I'm so glad you like the idea. Don't worry, there will be lots more C/B in the next chapter, which will hopefully be up soon 


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